Watchuseek Blog

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Handsome De Ville: Omega De Ville Chronograph Co-Axial Calibre 9301

It’s just possible that with all the excitement created by the London Olympics and the sheer anticipation of the forthcoming James Bond movie, Skyfall, that one of the Swiss brand’s most strikingly elegant new releases for 2012, the new De Ville Chronograph has been a trifle overlooked.

The watch is powered by manufacture Calibre 9301, with Omega’s now-famous co-axial escapement, and outfitted in a rose-gold case and a stunning blue dial and strap.It may come as a surprise to learn that the De Ville line has set the scene for some of the brand’s most important watchmaking innovations. A De Ville introduced the famous Calibre 2500, the first movement outfitted with the co-axial escapement developed in 1999 by the late Dr. George Daniels.

The De Ville was powered by the company’s first in-house movement develoed in 2007, co-axial Calibre 8500/8501, a watch that saw the debut of the Hour Vision case.

And recently, Omega used the De Ville Hour Vision Annual Calendar for the debut of another technical innovation, its Si14 silicon balance spring.The new De Ville Chronograph houses Omega’s Calibre 9300/9301, the chronograph version of the in-house movement that first made its debut in the Hour Vision models. The movement uses a column-wheel system and is equipped with a co-axial escapement and an Si14 silicon balance spring. It has been certified as a chronometer by the Swiss testing agency COSC, backed by nothing less than a four-year warranty.This handsome 42mm watch is made in 18k rose gold and features polished and brushed finishes. The two-zone blue dial has two domed subdials: the one at 3 o’clock displays both the 60-minute and 12-hour counters for the chronograph, making it easy to read elapsed times; the one at 9 o’clock is for the running seconds.

The watch has a central chronograph seconds hand and 18k-gold, diamond-polished, faceted central hour and minute hands. The applied Roman numeral indices are also gold, faceted on the sides and ends, and fully diamond-polished.

The new De Ville chronograph comes on a choice of straps including brown or blue leather, or with a stainless steel case on a stainless steel bracelet or on a black or blue leather strap. The hour hand can be changed without affecting the minute and seconds hands, ideal frequent travellers who travel across multiple time zones.The movement is visible through the case’s sapphire exhibition back, and is equipped with an 18k gold rotor and balance bridge. Other decorations on the movement include Geneva waves in Arabesque and blackened screws, barrels and balance wheel.The rose-gold model, with its blue alligator leather strap matching the dial, is also available with an opaline silver dial. Prices are $29,000 for the rose-gold model shown here, $8,300 for stainless steel on a leather strap, and $9,000 for stainless steel with bracelet.